Last year’s ‘Chasing After Shadows… Living With The Ghosts’ was an album inflated with dreampop ambition but – by Hammock’s high standards – felt a bit flat due to its lack of subtlety. For their next EP, the Nashville duo have enlisted the assistance of Steve Kilbey and timEbandit Powles from veteran Australian prog/psychedelic group The Church and this could prove to be an inspired move.

In lesser hands, the emotionally-driven opener ‘No Agenda’ might have sounded overwrought but both Hammock and Kilbey are old hands at this kind of thing and it’s a genuinely moving moment. The Hammock-only efforts are very impressive too. ‘Sinking Inside Yourself’ employs elongated, glistening guitars to deliver its message of angst whereas ‘Parkers Chapel’ is a languid journey consisting of keyboard washes and whispered vocals. In fact, only ‘Verse For Forgiveness’ is a little heavy-handed in its approach.

The ex-Church members certainly add something positive to the Hammock range, which suggests further collaborations might well be fruitful. Whether it’s the influence of the hired hands or not though, Hammock sound like they’re back on form with this EP.